基于SBR工艺的活性污泥呼吸速率在线软测量的研究

呼吸速率是表征活性污泥处理过程的主要变量,它直接反映了好氧生物处理过程中生物的活性和有机物的降解速率。本研究通过对呼吸速率测定原理的探讨,提出了基于SBR工艺的呼吸速率在线软测量模型,并通过实验室搭建的控制平台实现了微生物呼吸速率的在线测量。     

铜锰型催化剂对低浓度乙醇的催化燃烧性能

乙醇汽油车尾气中除了传统汽油车的三大常规污染物（CO、NO_x和HCs）,还含有导致光化学烟雾和臭氧污染的醇醛类非常规有机物。采用共沉淀法制备了CuO_x、MnO_x和CuMnO_x催化剂用于乙醇汽油车冷启动排放的低浓度乙醇的催化燃烧,同时采用氮气吸附脱附技术（BET）、X射线衍射（XRD）、氢气程序升温还原（H₂-TPR）、扫描电子显微镜（SEM）、X射线光电子能谱（XPS）对催化剂进行了表征。研究表明,CuMnO_x催化剂对低浓度乙醇具有较好的低温催化活性;当反应温度为185 ℃时,CO₂产率可达86%,优于单一的CuO_x催化剂（约20%）;同时,CuMnO_x比MnO_x具有较高的CO₂选择性。Cu、Mn之间的相互作用改变了催化剂的织构、结构和氧化性能,引起了催化剂表面晶貌和电子环境的变化,使得CuMnO_x催化剂表面具有大量的氧缺陷位,有利于氧分子在其表面的吸附,进而活化成表面活性氧物种。

     

耐盐复合菌剂强化生物工艺处理高盐废水的快速启动

从城市污水处理厂的活性污泥中驯化分离出2株耐盐高效菌：地衣芽孢杆菌（Bacillus licheniformis ）O1和枯草芽孢杆菌（Bacillus subtilis）Y5制备复合菌剂,用于高盐生活污水生物处理工艺快速启动研究。研究表明,在SBR系统中连续投加复合菌剂（制备的配比为1∶1）,在30 d完成快速启动（TOC去除率>85%）,并且在整个启动过程中,TOC的去除率都能够稳定保持在80%左右,而负载复合菌剂填料的投入可获得更稳定的出水水质。通过高通量测序与OTU分类,高盐废水的配入使得活性污泥微生物群落结构发生显著改变,并且在工艺启动后,所投加的耐盐高效菌O1和Y5在活性污泥微生物总量中所占比例由1.31%升高至6.13%,说明O1和Y5能够在小试SBR中长期存留,并逐渐成为优势种属之一。     

Changes in bird‐migration patterns associated with human‐induced mortality

Many bird populations have recently changed their migratory behavior in response to alterations of the environment. We collected data over 16 years on male Great Bustards (Otis tarda), a species showing a partial migratory pattern (sedentary and migratory birds coexisting in the same breeding groups). We conducted population counts and radio tracked 180 individuals to examine differences in survival rates between migratory and sedentary individuals and evaluate possible effects of these differences on the migratory pattern of the population. Overall, 65% of individuals migrated and 35% did not. The average distance between breeding and postbreeding areas of migrant individuals was 89.9 km, and the longest average movement of sedentary males was 3.8 km. Breeding group and migration distance had no effect on survival. However, mortality of migrants was 2.4 to 3.5 times higher than mortality of sedentary birds. For marked males, collision with power lines was the main cause of death from unnatural causes (37.6% of all deaths), and migratory birds died in collisions with power lines more frequently than sedentary birds (21.3% vs 6.3%). The percentage of sedentary individuals increased from 17% in 1997 to 45% in 2012. These results were consistent with data collected from radio‐tracked individuals: The proportion of migratory individuals decreased from 86% in 1997–1999 to 44% in 2006–2010. The observed decrease in the migratory tendency was not related to climatic changes (temperatures did not change over the study period) or improvements in habitat quality (dry cereal farmland area decreased in the main study area). Our findings suggest that human‐induced mortality during migration may be an important factor shaping the migration patterns of species inhabiting humanized landscapes.     

Stabilization effects of surplus soft clay with cement and GBF slag

Utilization of industrial waste and surplus construction soft clay as construction material was recommended, and many attempts at geotechnical waste utilization were undertaken. This study aimed at the application of cement and a kind of industrial wastes, i.e. granulated blast furnace slag, on stabilization of surplus soft clay. The results showed that the cement and slag can successfully stabilize Ariake clays even though this high organic clay fails to be stabilized by lime and cement. Addition of slag in cement for stabilization induces higher strength than cement alone for longer curing time. The application of the cement with slag is more suitable than cement alone for stabilization because of economical consideration.     

Application of Agriculture‐Developed Demographic Analysis for the Conservation of the Hawaiian Alpine Wekiu Bug

Insects that should be considered for conservation attention are often overlooked because of a lack of data. The detailed information necessary to assess population growth, decline, and maximum range is particularly difficult to acquire for rare and cryptic species. Many of these difficulties can be overcome with the use of life table analyses and heat energy accumulation models common in agriculture. The wekiu bug (Nysius wekiuicola), endemic to the summit of one volcanic mountain in Hawaii, is a rare insect living in an environmentally sensitive alpine stone desert, where field‐based population assessments would be inefficient or potentially detrimental to natural and cultural resources. We conducted laboratory experiments with the insects by manipulating rearing temperatures of laboratory colonies and made detailed observations of habitat conditions to develop life tables representing population growth parameters and environmental models for wekiu bug phenology and demographic change. Wekiu bugs developed at temperatures only found in its environment on sunny days and required the thermal buffer found on cinder cones for growth and population increase. Wekiu bugs required approximately 3.5 months to complete one generation. The bug developed optimally from 26 to 30 °C, temperatures that are much higher than the air temperature attains in its elevational range. The developmental temperature range of the species confirmed a physiological reason why the wekiu bug is only found on cinder cones. This physiology information can help guide population monitoring and inform habitat restoration and conservation. The wekiu bug was a candidate for listing under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, and the developmental parameters we quantified were used to determine the species would not be listed as endangered or threatened. The use of developmental threshold experiments, life table analyses, and degree day modeling can directly inform otherwise unobservable habitat needs and demographic characteristics of extremely rare insects. Aplicación de Análisis Demográfico de Desarrollo Agrícola para la Conservación del Insecto Weiku Alpino Hawaiano     

Estimating the extent and structure of trade in horticultural orchids via social media

The wildlife trade is a lucrative industry involving thousands of animal and plant species. The increasing use of the internet for both legal and illegal wildlife trade is well documented, but there is evidence that trade may be emerging on new online technologies such as social media. Using the orchid trade as a case study, we conducted the first systematic survey of wildlife trade on an international social‐media website. We focused on themed forums (groups), where people with similar interests can interact by uploading images or text (posts) that are visible to other group members. We used social‐network analysis to examine the ties between 150 of these orchid‐themed groups to determine the structure of the network. We found 4 communities of closely linked groups based around shared language. Most trade occurred in a community that consisted of English‐speaking and Southeast Asian groups. In addition to the network analysis, we randomly sampled 30 groups from the whole network to assess the prevalence of trade in cultivated and wild plants. Of 55,805 posts recorded over 12 weeks, 8.9% contained plants for sale, and 22–46% of these posts pertained to wild‐collected orchids. Although total numbers of posts about trade were relatively small, the large proportion of posts advertising wild orchids for sale supports calls for better monitoring of social media for trade in wild‐collected plants.     

Management Decentralization and Montane Forest Conditions in Tanzania

Abstract: We examined how differences in local forest‐management institutions relate to disparate anthropogenic forest disturbance and forest conditions among three neighboring montane forests in Tanzania under centralized, comanaged, or communal management. Institutional differences have been shaped by decentralization reforms. We conducted semistructured interviews with members of forest management committees, local government, and village households and measured anthropogenic disturbance, tree structure, and species composition in forest plots. We assessed differences in governance system components of local institutions, including land tenure, decision‐making autonomy by forest users, and official and de facto processes of rule formation, monitoring, and enforcement among the three management strategies. We also assessed differences in frequencies of prohibited logging and subsistence pole cutting, and measures of forest condition. An adjacent research forest served as an ecological reference for comparison of forest conditions. Governance was similar for comanaged and centralized management, whereas communal managers had greater tenure security and decision‐making autonomy over the use and management of their forest. There was significantly less illegal logging in the communal forest, but subsistence pole cutting was common across all management strategies. The comanaged forest was most disturbed by recent logging and pole cutting, as were peripheral areas of the larger centralized forest. This manifested in more degraded indicators of forest conditions (lower mean tree size, basal area, density of trees ≥ 90 cm dbh, and aboveground biomass and higher overall stem density). Greater tenure security and institutional autonomy of the communal strategy contributed to more effective management, less illegal logging, and maintenance of good forest conditions, but generating livelihood benefits was a challenge for both decentralized strategies. Our results underscore the importance of well‐designed institutional arrangements in forest management and illustrate mechanisms for improved forest governance and conservation in the context of Tanzanian decentralization reforms.     

DIN Retention‐Transport Through Four Hydrologically Connected Zones in a Headwater Catchment of the Upper Mississippi River1

Abstract: Dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) retention‐transport through a headwater catchment was synthesized from studies encompassing four distinct hydrologic zones of the Shingobee River Headwaters near the origin of the Mississippi River. The hydrologic zones included: (1) hillslope ground water (ridge to bankside riparian); (2) alluvial riparian ground water; (3) ground water discharged through subchannel sediments (hyporheic zone); and (4) channel surface water. During subsurface hillslope transport through Zone 1, DIN, primarily nitrate, decreased from ～3 mg‐N/l to <0.1 mg‐N/l. Ambient seasonal nitrate:chloride ratios in hillslope flow paths indicated both dilution and biotic processing caused nitrate loss. Biologically available organic carbon controlled biotic nitrate retention during hillslope transport. In the alluvial riparian zone (Zone 2) biologically available organic carbon controlled nitrate depletion although processing of both ambient and amended nitrate was faster during the summer than winter. In the hyporheic zone (Zone 3) and stream surface water (Zone 4) DIN retention was primarily controlled by temperature. Perfusion core studies using hyporheic sediment indicated sufficient organic carbon in bed sediments to retain ground water DIN via coupled nitrification‐denitrification. Numerical simulations of seasonal hyporheic sediment nitrification‐denitrification rates from perfusion cores adequately predicted surface water ammonium but not nitrate when compared to 5 years of monthly field data (1989‐93). Mass balance studies in stream surface water indicated proportionally higher summer than winter N retention. Watershed DIN retention was effective during summer under the current land use of intermittently grazed pasture. However, more intensive land use such as row crop agriculture would decrease nitrate retention efficiency and increase loads to surface water. Understanding DIN retention capacity throughout the system, including special channel features such as sloughs, wetlands and floodplains that provide surface water‐ground water connectivity, will be required to develop effective nitrate management strategies.     

Environmental impacts of iron ore tailings—The case of Tolo Harbour,Hong Kong

Disposal of iron ore tailings along the shore of Tolo Harbour, Hong Kong has altered the adjacent environment. Due to the ever-expanding population, the vast development of various industries, and the lack of sanitary control, the existing pollution problem of Tolo Harbour is serious. The iron ore tailings consist of a moderate amount of various heavy metals, e.g., copper, iron, manganese, lead, zinc, and a lower level of macronutrients. A few living organisms have been found colonizing this manmade habitat. Higher metal contents were also found in the tissue ofPaphia sp. (clam);Scopimera intermedia (crab);Chaetomorpha brychagona (green alga);Enteromorpha crinita (green alga); andNeyraudia reynaudiana (grass). The area can be reclaimed by surface amelioration using inert materials, soils, or organic substrates, and by direct seeding, using nontolerant and tolerant plant materials. Reclamation of the tailings would improve the amenity of the adjacent environment and also mitigate pollution escaping to the sea.